This whole grain spelt bread is a new favorite at our house – soft, yummy, and nutritious! Try it today!

Power House

Sourdough and whole grains are the best power couple! Whole grains are loaded with important vitamins and minerals as well as fiber and protein and sourdough helps make all that goodness more available for our bodies to absorb!

Whenever I teach a sourdough class, I always encourage everyone to use at least some whole grains in their breads. Whole grains are about 75% more nutrient dense than their white flour counterparts. All that nutrient density is what our bodies are longing for!

Try Spelt

Todays recipe uses 100% whole grain spelt flour. If you want to learn more about spelt, I have a whole post about it here. It is an awesome grain and the only grain that is a complete protein!

You can use this same recipe with other grains as well. Some grains are a little more finicky so you will want to learn their tricks. Spelt makes such a soft nice loaf of bread that my kids don’t even realize it is all whole grain. 

Three Awesome Tricks

There are three tricks I’ve found helpful when making 100% whole grain bread.

1 – The first is using the autolyse method, which simply means allowing the flour and water to sit and soak for a while before adding the other ingredients. This technique works well for both sourdough and yeasted breads.

Whole grain flours absorb water differently than white flour, so giving them time to soak helps the flour fully hydrate before you move on to the next step in the recipe. I’ve found that this resting period also helps prevent adding too much flour to the dough, making it easier to achieve the right consistency.

Whole Grain Goodness

2 – The second trick is using vital wheat gluten. Vital wheat gluten is pure gluten extracted from wheat flour and that extra boost of gluten helps the dough form better and rise more smoothly. You don’t need a lot but the little bit called for in this recipe makes a big difference in the dough. I have tried this same recipe without the vital wheat gluten and it works, but it is much softer and rises better with it. 

3 – And the last trick with whole grain bread is a long kneading time. I let this dough run in my Bosch for 10-15 minutes. I do the “window pane” test with this dough to make sure it has kneaded long enough. If it won’t stretch until I can see light coming through, then I knead it a little longer. 

I hope with those three tricks, this recipe turns out perfect for you. Eating whole grains is so much better for our bodies and the little bodies that we are often caring for. 

100% Whole Grain Spelt Sourdough Bread

Yield: 2 loaves

6 1/2 cups whole grain spelt flour, divided

3 tablespoons vital wheat gluten

2 cups water

2 cups happy, bubbly sourdough starter

1 tablespoon salt

⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil

⅓ cup honey

Directions

In the bowl of a stand mixer (I use a Bosch), add ONLY 5 cups of the whole grain spelt flour, the 3 T vital wheat gluten and the 2 c water. Run the mixer until everything is mostly mixed together. It will look a little shaggy, that’s ok!

Cover the mixture and let it sit for 30-60 minutes.

After the rest time, uncover the dough and add the 2 c sourdough starter, 1 T salt, 1/3 c oil, 1/3 c honey and 1 more cup of the spelt flour. Run the mixer again on low while it mixes things together. It might take a minute for it all to mash together.

Once everything is incorporated, stop the mixer and feel the dough – if it is still pretty sticky, add up to 1/2 cup flour. Mix again. I always need the whole 1/2 cup in my bread but yours might be a little different. Add more flour based on the needs of your dough.

Leave the mixer running for 10-15 minutes. After 10 minutes, I stop the mixer and do the windowpane test. If it stretches without ripping the dough is done. If it rips easily, let it knead a few minutes more.

Once the dough is finished kneading, remove it to a large tupperware or bowl and cover it loosely. Leave the dough on the counter until it has doubled 6-10 hours.

Directions Continued…

When the dough has doubled, form it into loaves and place the formed loaves into a bread pan. I like to grease my bread pans with butter or dairy free butter. It works best for me.

Cover the loaves with plastic wrap. Let the loaves double in size on the counter. In my house, it takes about 2-3 hours.

When the loaves are getting close to doubled, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. When the oven is preheated, place a pizza stone on the oven rack. Move the risen loaves in the bread pans to the oven on the pizza stone – this will keep the bottom from getting too dark.

Set a timer for 18 minutes. When the timer rings, rotate your loaves and cover the tops with a piece of foil. ( I have to do this in my oven or my loaves will get too dark on the top. Your oven might not work the same as mine and you might be able to skip this step.)

Insert an instant read thermometer into the center of your bread. (This is the one I have and I highly recommend investing in one if you make a lot of bread. It takes all the guesswork out of knowing when the bread is done. This particular thermometer will beep once it hits the temperature you have it set for and it beeps loud and doesn’t stop until I pull out the bread – a feature I especially appreciate!)

Bake until the thermometer reads 180 degrees. If you do not have an instant read thermometer, bake another 15-20 minutes.

Remove and let cool 5 minutes, then remove from the pans and let cool on a cooling rack.